vrock

On 6/27/2021 at 5:46 PM, Biker19 said:

Use the RCI app as soon as you board. No guarantee your whole group will be accommodated together, typically up to 14 are allowed per session. Most folks miss the venue on the way into the Seaplex on the port side.

Thank you. 

On 6/26/2021 at 9:22 AM, KKB said:

We cruised over New Years.

We made reservations for the IFly so little waiting.

The Eye we did on a port day so no waiting--figured a sea day, you would just see, well, the ocean..

OH--forgot the Escape room! Get on the ship EARLY & make reservations, as there are few!!

I have been trying to find out more about the escape room.   How and where do you make reservations for this.  Our group would love that.   Is there a fee for the escape room.

We were on the ovation in Alaska and loved the outdoor seating behind the wj 

Will will be flying into Newark.   We will use Uber to make any trips needed before our cruise.  Thank you for all of the responses. Hopefully our December cruise will go. 

The last time we booked the hibachi experience I think 8 to 10 people.   We booked it for my brother's birthday and had a cake delivered.   We shared the cake with the other diners.    There were 6 in our party and I think 2 or 3 other people. 

Anthem December 12, 2021 🤞

We are considering booking embassy suites on international Blvd.  

We were booked with dial 7 for our December 2020 cruise that was canceled.   We will probably book them again.  Uber would require us to book more than one car and we would rather travel together. 

We have looked at reviews on trip advisor .  I was hoping for some personal experiences with hotels and car service.   😀

We have been to New York before and would prefer to stay closer to the port.  But thank you.   Any hotel recommendations near the airport 

We will be need a hotel room 2 days pre cruise and a car service to take 6 of us to the port.   We are ok with a hotel near the airport.   Would like to be near the mall.  Would appreciate all opinions.   Thank you 😃

Ladies cruise Ovation of the seas to Alaska August 2019.  We were supposed to be on Anthem of the seas December 2020 we shifted to December 2021 keeping our fingers crossed. 

1 hour ago, El Abuelo said:

TL/DR - we enjoyed the ship, itinerary, crew and fellow passengers. No major complaints, mostly nit-picking.  It was a good trip. 

 

Ship

Our fourth ship (Allure, Freedom, Harmony) This ship felt a bit narrow and cramped, though I think we’re spoiled after being on Allure and Harmony.  The promenade feels like it has more space dedicated to stores and less to walk or enjoy. The outside pool area and running track also felt crowded. While at sea the weather was 50’s & 60's and rainy, so we spent little time outside, which just made the inside seem all the more enclosed.

 

It does have two adult attractions – Northstar and Ripcord. Northstar was nice – about 8 or 9 minutes up with a pleasant view and an attendant making wisecracks. When we were at Dawes Glacier they charged for the ride. Northstar was not working for the first 2 ½ days of the cruise. Ripcord was like a popular ride at a theme park – an hour waiting in-line for a minute long ride. I was disappointed, because it needs a bit of skill, which means more than one trip, and there’s not enough availability. It was fully booked as the cruise began. It’s similar to FlowRider in that a passenger mastering the basics will be allowed more time, while someone wiping out early is just moved out.  

 

There was a large multipurpose indoor court / area where there were bumper cars, skating, and ball games, with volleyball and a dodge ball contest. This area was always in use and quite popular.

 

We felt the ship moved / rocked more than Oasis class. Others probably complained, as the captain made an announcement regarding currents and ship stabilizers toward the end of the cruise. We overheard someone say “top heavy”. Certainly the sea did not appear  choppy enough to cause the excessive and never ending movement, but it was substantially more than we have experienced on other trips.

 

The gym was well equipped (for our needs). No vitality cafe, which we missed.

 

Royal Theater was large and the seats comfortable. We saw two headliner shows that we really enjoyed, more so than any other cruise so far.  There were also two live bands, one was the worst we’ve heard on any cruise. I guess it averages out. Two70 is a nice area with great views, we caught part of the show, which was entertaining. That food option is fine, (assembly salads and sandwiches) but could be so much more with some better training and logistics. Both the theater and the food are nice options not available on the Oasis class. 

 

No smell of smoking anywhere, and this was the first time we've been able to walk through a casino. Not sure where the smoking area was,  we only saw smokers twice, both times a couple of jerks secretly smoking in public areas. 

 

I think we would have found this ship more enjoyable if we hadn’t cruised first on Allure and Harmony. Still, More nits than real complaints. 

 

Itinerary

We didn’t care for a sea / land combination, so the Seattle round trip appealed to us. We were nonetheless left with a feeling of too many sea days (4) and not enough port visits (3). The ports we did visit were very good, with a nice variety of both RCI and locally based excursions, plenty of time to visit. We saw lots of marine life, including two Orca pods that were kind enough to spend over an hour with us and put on quite a display. It’s still a good option for people looking for a simple Alaska visit and not interested in ship / land combinations.

 

Crew

Crew was just as good as ever - hard working, trying to please.

 

Fellow passengers

Different from Caribbean cruises. Not as much drinking, partying or at the pool. Also not as many families with young children. Not as much yelling. On formal nights there seemed to be fewer passengers with formal dress. Overall, dress was not as relaxed as we’ve seen with Caribbean itineraries.  

We were in a grand suite (second time), breakfast and dinner in CK, lunch in WJ. No complaints about the food. Lots of variety. Some people just don't know basic hygiene and etiquette   in a buffet, but this was definitely less of an issue than we've seen in the Caribbean cruises. CK staff was top notch, Nadia in the lounge was perfect. The lounge was fine, with a nice view. Sometimes crowded and often noisy but always a place to sit and never unpleasant. There were 5 Pinnacles, we met them and had some pleasant conversations. Surprising, it turns out they are real people and just like everyone else. (based on comments here I expected horns, tails and pitchforks)

 

Seattle port terminal is a zoo, makes us appreciate Port Everglades all the more. Both priority check-in and departure is quite limited – almost non-existent. We queued for 40 minutes to check in,  with many RCI people around but none  particularly helpful. For disembarkation we used Seattle Port Valet, which was very helpful. There was an immigration / customs check, but they didn’t really do much except smile and glance at the passports. The terminal is very small and a full ship overwhelms it. In and out early is best, and better to allow plenty of time for the crowds. I went down for coffee at 6 and saw lots of passengers queued for early self-departure.

 

Good binoculars and a rain jacket are a must for this cruise.

What time did you arrive at the port for check in?  Did they board by C&A loyaly tiers?

I would love to see any photos of diamond lounge.  Thank you.

Anyone have any recent experiences with old wow band exchange/reprogramming on ovation of the seas. 

21 hours ago, pdr997 said:

We are really looking forward to this!  We booked the 6 person boat at 1:00.  How about you?  

We also booked the 6 person at 1:00.   There are 3 of us in our party..  😀

On 2/18/2019 at 8:32 AM, pdr997 said:

Thank you Emfagan. I did see this cruise line listed online.  

We also booked harv and marv whale watching in Juneau.   We booked with them on our last alaska cruise and had a great time.  

On 2/13/2019 at 10:49 AM, pdr997 said:

We booked also for August 2019.  Just hubby and I.  Sail on the 16th from Seattle.

We are on the August 16th sailing as well.   See you on board. 😀

Just an fyi when we went to vegas in August I took my last sea pass card but they would not accept that as proof i had to pull up my status online to show them. They upgraded my status at mirage it was pretty easy.

Our neighbors had a boom box that they played on their balcony on the EN - first time I had that experience:cool:

I think i would rather have the smokers. :)

Very disappointed to hear the will not reprogram old wow bands. I saved our old bands to take on our next cruise.

I have been on athem of the seas the sister ship to ovation and we were in cabin 9648 loved the location no noise and very convenient.

We are going on ovation in August 2019 and are on deck 10 near the elevators. Loved the location. Have a great cruise. :)

We loved Tracey's Crab Shack looking forward to going again on our Alaska cruise. :)

I hope they keep the kung foo panda for the alaska sailings.

We put 12 pack of water a a 2 six pack of diet gingerale in tote bag by itself and checked the bag it arrived at our cabin. It has never been a problem. We use the empty tote for souvenirs on the trip home. Have a great cruise. :)